Nonprofit Board President Job Description
Requirements for Successful Organizational Leadership
Aug 23, 2009
Presidents of not-for-profit organizations must accomplish key tasks to achieve the mission and vision of the agency and provide constituents with quality services.
Successful nonprofit boards depend on their presidents to provide leadership and direct the work of the trustees. It is incumbent upon the board president to understand what is expected of him or her in this capacity. This article offers a job description for a board president of a nonprofit corporation.
Board President Job Descriptions
- Ensure that members understand their jobs and are able to fulfill those expectations. This is achieved by providing a thorough orientation of new members, offering board development and education to make sure that members have the skills that they need as well as monitoring their performance and intervening as appropriate.
- Help recruit new members and develop succession plans for committee chairs. The president needs to be sure that there is the right number of board members with the optimal set of skills needed by the organization.
- Provide structure so that the work of the board and organization can be accomplished. For example the president must ensure that there is an agenda for each meeting, minutes are kept and reviewed as well as reports provided in advance of the meeting to allow for a complete review and consideration of the issues by the board.
- Preside over the meetings. In this capacity the president makes sure that the topics on the agenda are given complete consideration, that consensus is achieved and that everyone has an opportunity to be heard. The president needs to balance thorough discussion with efficiency in moving through the agenda.
- Ensure that management tools are developed and implemented. These tools include a three year strategic plan, annual action plans, a budget, human resources plan, to name a few.
- Work with the committee chairs. The president may serve as an ex officio member of the board’s various committees. Depending on the by-laws of the organization, the president may be a nonvoting member. The president should work with each committee chair to identify potential problems or issues and help the chair to resolve them
- Work closely with while not micromanaging the executive director. The president provides advice and acts as a sounding board. In conjunction with the personnel committee, the board president ensures that an annual evaluation of the CEO is conducted and that the CEO is compensated fairly.
- Serve as a link to community. According to the job description outlined in an article by Nathan Garber, the board president must work with the media, constituents of the organization, funders and legislators to create positive working relationships and promote the organization. The president must be prepared to act as the public face of the organization addressing issues with the media, lobbying for key legislation and promoting the organization to prospective donors.
The board president of a nonprofit organization is accountable for leading the members of the board and making sure that the mission and vision of the organization are achieved. Understanding the elements of the job help bring about success.
The copyright of the article Nonprofit Board President Job Description in Non-Profit Governance is owned by Michele Dane. Permission to republish Nonprofit Board President Job Description in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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